As for Sting, and his show, I mean the whole reason we were there in the first place: it was excellent. The Beacon is a much smaller venue for him, so he's playing four shows there this week to accommodate the crowds. The first half of the show consists mostly of songs from his new album, 'Sacred Love,' although he mixes in a favorite old rocker, 'Synchronicity II.' The new songs are lush and melodic, a lot of ballads. The title track is a mini masterwork for Sting.

The second half gives the people what they want: 'Roxanne' and such. I asked Sting if he got nauseous at the idea of having to play this 25-year-old song every night, but he says he doesn't. 'You see how much the audience loves it, and that really affects me,' he said. He delivers several of his greatest hits, including a raucous version of 'If I Ever Lose My Faith in You,' and a muscular, joyful 'Every Breath You Take.'

You could see during the latter song how much fun Sting is actually having not playing to an arena or stadium crowd, but to a human-sized room where you can hear the audience sing along to the songs. It reminded me of a Police concert at Madison Square Garden, circa 1982. On the subway home, you could hear the echo of fans singing the Sting trademark vocal, 'Eee-oh, eee-oh.' A quarter-century later, he still has that wonderful effect.